Schmidt says "the future is now" for YouTube, which recently passed the milestone of 1 billion unique visitors every month. But, he adds, if you think that's a large number, "wait until you get to 6 or 7 billion."

YouTube billed the event, which was part of a week of digital media "NewFronts," as a "brandcast." YouTube presented itself as a new video entity unlike TV, one with global reach, community engagement and more 18- to 34-year-olds than any cable network.